Project Reach: Gardening Club

Students and staff in Project REACH are underway with their summer gardening project. This is the fifth year Project REACH, a TRIO Talent Search Program on the campus of the University of Massachusetts Boston, has had a community garden service learning project aligned with its five-week summer academic enrichment program.

In the club, students are learning about plant health, appreciating nature, and giving back to their neighborhoods. One of the program’s participant’s, Antoine, said, “The gardening club teaches me that you can benefit from helping your community.  I didn’t like it at first, but over time I’ve grown to enjoy the club and what it does for the public.”

The garden site is located at the Dever Elementary School, which is just a short walk from UMass Boston. Having the Project REACH students oversee the garden during the summer not only maintains it but helps beautify the school campus. Students weed existing garden beds, built a raised garden bed, and set up a system for watering the garden. Although the program ends before most of the produce can be harvested by the Project REACH participants, it gives the students at the Dever the chance to harvest in the fall.

I had a great time being a part this eye-opening experience, and it was pleasure covering the program as well.